Had kitchen knife to scare ‘drug dealer’

A man with mental health problems had a kitchen knife with an eight-inch blade because he wanted to scare the person who sold him a rolled up till receipt instead of drugs.

Barry Mosely (40), of Double Street, Spalding, was arrested at 2pm on October 10 in Spalding’s Hall Place.

Paul Wood, prosecuting, said Mosely was searched and an officer found a red handled kitchen knife in his pocket.

Mosely told the officer: “It’s for my own protection. I am sick of people taking the **** out of me.”

Mr Wood said Mosely later explained he had been in town earlier looking to buy drugs and bought what he believed were his drugs – but it turned out to be a rolled up till receipt.

He got the knife with the intention of finding the person responsible and “scaring them”.

Solicitor Phillipa Chatterton, mitigating, said Mosely is a paranoid schizophrenic and at the time of the offence wasn’t using his own medication as he should and, unfortunately, started to self-medicate with amphetamine.

Miss Chatterton told magistrates: “It’s quite clear that this gentleman was suffering from a psychotic episode and it’s unfortunate that it has to come through the court system.”

Following the incident, he was taken into hospital and remained there for ten days.

“Since this hospitalisation, he is once again medicated – they have apparently upped the dosage – and he’s feeling quite stable.”

Mosely was given a two-year conditional discharge by Boston magistrates on Wednesday and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £15 victim surcharge. He pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to possessing a knife in a public place.